Dylan Harper teams up with Kinder Bueno to reward fans this March

Go ahead and check out any 2025 NBA Mock Draft, and chances are you’ll see Rutgers freshman standout Dylan Harper among the projected top-five picks.

FOX Sports college basketball writer John Fanta, who recently projected Harper to go No. 2 overall to the Utah Jazz, described Harper as a “tremendous guard and a player who is wired to be a shotmaker and playmaker.”

But while Harper is expected to shine bright at the next level, it’s no secret that his freshman season, despite the gaudy offensive numbers, has not gone fully according to plan. The Scarlet Knights had an up-and-down campaign, finishing with a 15-17 overall record and missing the NCAA Tournament.

However, that hasn’t stopped Harper from making headlines this March. The standout guard is teaming up with Kinder Bueno to allow fans to win big with the “Bueno Buckets” program. Harper will be rewarding fans with a year’s supply of the chocolate bar, and the number of fans that win will be determined by the team that scores the highest point total on Thursday, the opening day of the NCAA Tournament.

Harper took to Instagram on Tuesday to announce the partnership and encourage fans to comment #BuenoBuckets and tag @kinderbuenous.

FOX Sports caught up with Harper for an exclusive interview to discuss his freshman season, playing alongside fellow freshman standout Ace Bailey, the college basketball scene in New York and New Jersey this season, and his partnership with Kinder Bueno.

Dylan Harper’s BUZZER BEATER & 24 points lifts Rutgers over Seton Hall

Can you start by talking about the partnership you have with Kinder Bueno, how it all started and what you’ll be doing with the brand?

My partnership with Kinder Bueno really started with my sister, who really liked it. She introduced me to it, and that’s how I first knew about it. I have a great opportunity with a great company to do something big for March.

Are you a fan of Kinder Bueno, yourself?

Oh yes, definitely. Whenever I need a little treat on the side or something after the game, I grab some Kinder Bueno.

You and Ace Bailey are the first Big Ten freshman duo to each score 500 points in a season since Chris Webber and Jalen Rose did it with the Fab Five. What does it mean to hear your name mentioned in that elite company?

“It’s crazy to be compared to that Fab Five team. We have a thing over here where we have five freshmen that all came in at the same time, and we play big minutes, so we kind of have our own little thing going on. Ace and I, we work so hard every day, and props to our teammates for putting us in the right spots, and props to our coaching staff for helping us out.”

The college basketball scene in New York and New Jersey has really come to life this year with what St. John’s is doing and you and Ace being such big headliners at Rutgers. Do you feel that New York basketball has made a comeback on the college scene?

“You definitely feel all the pressure and all the energy that comes with it, but that’s kind of what we asked for when Ace and I signed up for this, to come to Rutgers and play for a great coach like Steve Pikiell. We both knew that we were going to have a lot of expectations, but the way you have to go about it is to just tune it out and just play basketball and do what we’ve been doing, which is continue to work hard and getting prepared for every game.”

The Big Ten has been really good this year. What’s been the toughest matchup you’ve faced all year, either a team or an individual that you’ve gone up against?

“Every game we’ve got to play a tough matchup. It seems like every team we play had a great guard. There’s Braden Smith at Purdue, Brice Williams at Nebraska. Not a lot of people talk about him, but he’s a hard matchup. He’s physical and gets to his spots. There are also a lot of really good bigs in this league that not a lot of people talk about. [Trey] Kaufman-Renn can really score the ball. Even at Penn State, I could go with Ace Baldwin or [Dawson] Garcia at Minnesota. There’s just a lot of talent throughout the Big Ten and there’s never an off night.”

When it comes to playing college basketball, what is the biggest difference you’ve had to adjust to from the high school game to the college game?

“The physicality. I like to bump guys and stuff like that, but when you get to college, you’re playing against grown men. They are 23 or 24 years old, so what has really helped me is just trying to embrace it … embrace the physicality and the speed of the game, and just learn day by day.”

There has been a lot of chatter about your NBA potential and how good you might be at the next level. Who do you model your game after and is there a current or former NBA player that you view as a comparison for yourself?

“I try to model my game off people who are my size, my height and play my position. Guys like Cade Cunningham, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Luka Dončić … big guards that can really get to their spot, and they know when to attack and when not to. I try to take little things from each of their games and, obviously, a lot of people compare me to Kyrie (Irving) because he’s from New Jersey. He’s someone who is just fun to watch.”

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